Contra Costa college district announces four finalists for Diablo Valley College President

The Contra Costa Community College District has announced the selection of four finalists for the position of President of Diablo Valley College (DVC). The finalists are: Susan Lamb, Kimberlee Messina, Ed.D., Christopher M. Reber, Ph.D. and Joanne Russell, Ph.D.

Four separate public forums have been scheduled for November 13-16, 2017. The forums will begin at 2:00 p.m. and last 45 minutes. At each forum, the finalist will make statements and answer questions. The forums are open to the broad community, students, faculty and staff and will be held in DVC’s Diablo Room, 321 Golf Club Road, Pleasant Hill, CA 94523.

Susan Lamb has worked in higher education for 30 years and in the California Community College system for more than 25 years. Most recently, Ms. Lamb served as the Interim Chancellor of City College of San Francisco where she provided the leadership to move the college within a two-year period from Restoration Status to reaffirmation of accreditation for the full seven-year cycle. In order to achieve this goal, she worked with the college leadership to implement services at all college locations and to clarify and codify decision-making and governance systems within the college to increase transparency and effectiveness. She also collaborated with state legislators, the San Francisco Mayor’s Office, members of the Board of Supervisors, and the leadership of the faculty and classified unions to develop and implement a Promise Program called Free City for the fall 2017 semester, to extend and increase the college’s parcel tax, and to encourage the passage of five years of state restorative growth funding for the college. Before City College of San Francisco, Ms. Lamb, worked within the Contra Costa Community College District (CCCCD) at both Diablo Valley College and Contra Costa College. She served as the Vice President of Instruction at Diablo Valley College for six years.

Dr. Kimberlee Messina

Kimberlee Messina, Ed.D. is a passionate supporter of student success and equity and a committed educator who has served the California Community Colleges for more than 26 years. Kimberlee’s career path includes service as a “freeway flyer” adjunct faculty, a tenured Spanish instructor, a two-term academic senate president, and an instructional dean of STEM at Santa Rosa Junior College. She served as the Vice President of Instruction and Institutional Research and Interim President at Foothill College from 2011-2016 before joining San Mateo County Community College District where she is currently the Interim Vice Chancellor of Educational Services and Planning. Kimberlee holds a bachelor’s degree in Sociology, a master’s degree in Spanish from California State University, Sacramento and a doctorate in Educational Leadership from University of California, Davis. An accomplished public speaker, she has presented to the Statewide Academic Senate and the Association of California Community College Administrators. She has served on a number of accreditation site teams and currently serves as a member of the technical assistance committee for the statewide Institutional Effectiveness Partnership Initiative, a member of the Board of the Association for California Community College Administrators (ACCCA) and Co-Chair of the Management Development Committee.

Dr. Christopher Reber

Dr. Christopher M. Reber has devoted his entire 36-year career to postsecondary education. He is currently President of Community College of Beaver County (CCBC) near Pittsburgh, PA, where he is leading new initiatives in support of a student-centered learning environment; strategic enrollment management; regional partnerships; and a culture of planning, assessment and improvement. Dr. Reber has championed the development of nationally distinctive CCBC High School Academies; more than 600 articulation agreements with four-year colleges and universities nationwide; and new program development that addresses high priority workforce and economic development needs throughout western Pennsylvania. Under his leadership CCBC has been chosen as an Aspen 150 Institution and has become known as the tristate workforce development leader in a rapidly emerging economic and industrial transformation. Prior to joining CCBC, Dr. Reber served for 12 years as Executive Dean of Venango College of Clarion University. He led the college to achieve enrollment growth and helped faculty develop new programs supported by a diverse network of partnerships. The college offered stackable credentials including certificates, associate degrees, applied baccalaureates and graduate degrees. Dr. Reber led the development and approval of Clarion University’s first doctoral degree in Nursing Practice. Dr. Reber’s career also includes 18 years at Penn State Erie, The Behrend College, where he served on the senior management team as the Chief Development, University Relations and Alumni Relations Officer during a successful $50 million capital campaign; and Chief Student Affairs Officer during a period of significant college growth. Earlier in his career he led continuing and cooperative education programs at Lakeland Community College near Cleveland, Ohio. Dr. Reber strives to be a servant leader in his work and community engagement. He is passionate about the educational imperative to promote social justice and access to underserved communities. Throughout his career he has provided leadership and support for diversity, including the creation of a Presidential Advisory Council on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at CCBC; participation on Clarion University’s Diversity Strategic Planning Committee; and creation and leadership of Penn State Erie’s Diversity and Educational Equity Committee. He is currently a member of the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) Commission on Diversity, Inclusion and Equity. Dr. Reber holds a bachelor’s degree from Dickinson College, where he graduated Summa Cum Laude and was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa; a master’s degree from Bowling Green State University, where he was named “Graduate Student of the Year;” and a Ph.D. from the University of Pittsburgh. He also holds a post-graduate certificate from Harvard University’s Graduate School of Education. Dr. Reber lives in Ellwood City, PA with his partner, Kerry Stetler. He is the father of two children: Jonathan, age 21, and Katherine, age 19.

Dr. Joanne Russell

Dr. Joanne Russell is presently Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost at Kingsborough Community College, an Achieving the Dream Leader College that is part of the City University of New York in Brooklyn, New York. Previously, she was Provost Fellow for Community College Access Programs and Workforce Development at the State University of New York System Administration, responsible for working with SUNY’s community colleges to scale initiatives that increase access, success, completion and workforce development. She has spent over 25 years working in higher education in various faculty and administrative roles, including Vice President for Academic Affairs at Westchester Community College in New York and Dean of Academic Affairs at Manchester Community College in Connecticut. She has provided leadership for equity initiatives, college strategic planning, resource development, regional and programmatic accreditation, general education reform, developmental education redesign, high school partnership work, workforce development, program development and expansion, and extensive hiring of faculty and staff. Dr. Russell has been the Principal Investigator and Project Director of many grant-funded initiatives to strengthen student access and success. She received a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry in 1979 and a Ph.D. in Biochemistry in 1984 from the University of Connecticut.

About Diablo Valley College

Diablo Valley College (DVC) is one of three colleges in the Contra Costa Community College District. For nearly 70 years, Diablo Valley College has provided quality education to the community it serves. The larger of DVC’s two campuses is located in Pleasant Hill while the newer San Ramon Campus serves the south county in Dougherty Valley. Between its two campuses, DVC serves more than 22,000 students each semester with a wide variety of program options. DVC is not only recognized as one of California’s best community colleges, but it also leads the state in transfer to four-year institutions. For more about DVC, visit www.dvc.edu.

About the College District

The Contra Costa Community College District (CCCCD) is one of the largest multi-college community college districts in California. The CCCCD serves a population of 1,019,640 people, and its boundaries encompass all but 48 of the 734-square-mile land area of Contra Costa County. The District is home to Contra Costa College in San Pablo, Diablo Valley College in Pleasant Hill, Los Medanos College in Pittsburg, as well as educational centers in Brentwood and San Ramon. The District headquarters is located in downtown Martinez.